For years volunteer based organizations have searched for ways to evaluate/measure the value of volunteering. Mangers of volunteer programs faithfully tallied numbers of volunteers and hours of service only to later learn that these were inputs rather than outputs of volunteer programs and did little to document the real worth of volunteer's efforts.
Looking to the business sector for a model, a variety of methods have been developed for assigning a dollar value to volunteer work, such as living wage, average wage and minimum wage.
The comparable worth method attempts to equate the work of paid employees to the work of volunteers. Actual assigned tasks are matched as closely as possible. It is assumed that the dollar value of the volunteer's time equates to the dollar value of a paid employee's time.
(Anderson & Zimmerer, 2003, p. 40)
Perhaps one of the most widely used calculations for assigning a dollar value to volunteer work is the Independent Sector's annual estimate ($16.54). "The hourly value, updated yearly, is based on the average hourly earnings of all nonagricultural workers as determined by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. INDEPENDENT SECTOR takes this figure and increases it by 12 percent to estimate for fringe benefits." (Independent Sector, 2003)
The danger of these dollar value approaches is that they do not include the organizational expenses for managing and sustaining volunteers. To state that volunteers gave $500,000.00 of service to an organization overlooks program expenditures and implies that the organization "saved" this amount of money by engaging free labor from volunteers. These calculations perpetuate the myth that "volunteer are free," and presuppose the organization would have paid employees to do this work if volunteers had not been available.
VIVA, the Volunteer Investment and Value Audit (designed and applied in the UK and Europe) is designed to calculate the cost benefits ratio for volunteer work. VIVA adds up all the organization's expenditures on volunteers to determine volunteer investment. Then VIVA applies the equivalent pay rates for the work volunteers do to determine the value of volunteer work. By dividing the total value by the total expenditure an organizations can calculates the cost benefits: for every dollar invested or spent on volunteering there is a dollar return for the organization for the value of volunteer work generated. (For example, a 1:4.5 ratio means that for every $1.00 invested there is a $4.50 return in volunteer work.)
VIVA measures an aspect of volunteering that is quantifiable, has validity and is informative. But these indicators of cost-effectiveness should be assessed within the context of a complete appreciation of why organizations have volunteers and the qualitative benefits of a voluntary workforce. To prevent hasty conclusions that "cheap" volunteers should replace paid staff - or, conversely, that volunteers are an expensive and expendable luxury - it is important to place the economic dimension within the framework of a broad volunteer audit.
(Gaskin, 2003, p. 47)
In our efforts to develop monetary models for valuing volunteering we are damaging and demeaning the real impact by focusing on an equation that says volunteering saves money. This is not only false but it reduces volunteering to the bottom line of a balance sheet.
To move beyond dollar values for volunteering, there has been increasing emphasis on outcome or impact evaluation, which measures the impact of volunteer services on clients. Impact evaluation is based on measurable objectives, begins with program planning, and addresses the issues raised by Gaskin that we must assess volunteer efforts within the broader context of why organizations have volunteers.
In growing numbers, service providers, governments, other funders, and the public are calling for clearer evidence that the resources they expend actually produce benefits for people. Consumers of services and volunteers who provide services want to know that programs to which they devote their time really make a difference. That is, they want better accountability for the use of resources. One clear and compelling answer to the question of "Why measure outcomes?" is: To see if programs really make a difference in the lives of people.
(United Way of America, 1996, p. 4)
As organizations continue to grapple with how to quantitatively measure impact, the concept of "social capital theory," introduced by Robert Putman and discussed at the International Association for Voluntary Efforts World Volunteerism Conference in Seoul, Korea (November 2002), suggests there are interesting new dimensions to consider as we explore how to calculate the value of volunteering.
In the second part of this article (September, 2003), I will explore the implications of social capital and the search for a comprehensive volunteer audit to measure the contributions volunteers are making.
Gaskin, K. (2003). VIVA in Europe: A comparative study of the value of volunteer investment and value audit. The Journal for Volunteer Administration, 20:2, pp.45-48.
Independent Sector (2003). Downloaded 7/25/2003 from: http://www.independentsector.org/media/voltime03pr.html
United Way of America (1996). Measuring program outcomes: A practical approach. Alexandria, VA: United Way of America